The restoration of the vehicle was a 3+ year effort . The car was originally delivered from the factory in St. Louis with a 383 and a pistol-grip 4 speed, but had gained a 440 at some point in it's long life. The car had originally belonged to fallen Chicago Police Officer Richard Francis who was tragically killed in the line of duty on July 2nd, 2008 at the intersection of Belmont and Western in Chicago. Officer Francis was a gear-head who loved cars and motorcycles, and had a number of vehicles in his collection. This car was one of the projects that he was never able to get to. The car sat under the Western avenue overpass in front of the 19th district for a couple of years until Officer Francis reluctantly sold it to a fellow 19th district P.O. in 2005. That P.O. sold the car to me in 2007. The restoration started in the Fall of 2007, and Officer Francis was keenly interested in it's progress. When Officer Francis was killed in 2008, the owner decided to make this car a tribute to the memory of Officer Francis. The CPD checkerboard is wrapped in vinyl over the painted tail stripe, and Officer Francis's shield can be found on the side of the car. The car was completed in the fall of 2010.